Advance Healthcare Directive Preparation

An Advance Healthcare Directive can be a critical document when it comes to preparing yourself for possible medical complications. If you are considering creating an Advance Healthcare Directive, understanding the basics of what the document is, and how it can benefit you will help you understand if it is the right choice for you.

The powers given in an Advance Healthcare Directive are restricted to medical decisions. People who are dealing with serious end-of-life situations or illnesses can make a decision about the medical treatment they will receive through the agent they select.

When it comes to serious medical situations, some of the difficult decisions to make that could be raised in an Advance Healthcare Directive are:

• Whether to undergo a risky surgery
• Whether to be treated at home or hospitalized
• In the event of death, whether to donate tissue and/or organs
• Whether to be kept alive if fallen into a coma or pronounced brain dead

With an Advance Healthcare Directive, ambiguity in these situations can be erased, and people can receive the medical treatments they plan for even when they can no longer express their desires.

Advance Healthcare Directives – The Process

To create an Advance Healthcare Directive in the State of California, a form must be filled out that corresponds with the state’s Probate Code §4700-4701. To complete an Advance Healthcare Directive, an agent must be designated to make healthcare decisions. An agent can begin making medical decisions usually once the physician has deemed the signer unable to make his or her own medical care decisions.

When it comes to Advance Healthcare Directives, there are some limitations on who can be named as an agent. For instance, an employee or operator of a healthcare facility where treatment is being received cannot be named an agent. An exception to this, however, is whether the worker is a co-worker or relative of the signer. It should be noted that alternative agents can be named as well in case the first agent is not available.

 Limiting an Agent’s Authority Under an Advance Health Care Directive

In an Advance Healthcare Directive, the selected agent will be able to make decisions on behalf of the signer in a time of crisis and when the signer cannot make and/or communicate desired treatment goals, priorities, and preferences. Unfortunately, many people fail to consider that a serious medical condition can happen at any age. When unable to make or communicate healthcare goals, having an Advance Healthcare Directive will ensure the signer’s values, wishes, and beliefs are upheld.

With this said, choosing an Advance Healthcare Directive agent is a very important decision. An agent has to be a mature person, who is able to handle stressful situations well. An agent should also be someone who can be trusted, as this person will be entrusted with important medical care wishes that must be carried out in the event of the signer’s incapacity. An agent should know and understand the signer’s acceptable quality of life.

When creating an Advance Healthcare Directive, it is important to understand that the agent’s authority can be limited. To establish limitations, any concerning issues should be raised when creating the document. Some of the agent’s powers that can limited include the following:

• Choose to administer or withhold certain types of medications
• Choose to administer or withhold life-sustaining treatment
• Decide whether a cardiopulmonary resuscitation can be given
• Decide whether artificial hydration and nutrition can be provided
• Refuse or consent for specific forms of medical treatment, procedures, or service
• Approve or deny diagnostic tests, programs of medication, and/or surgical procedures

Additionally, the agent’s authority can also be limited to a specific time frame. For example, if the signer knows that he or she will undergo a risky medical procedure, the agent can obtain the medical power of authority solely for the duration of the procedure and/or the signer’s recovery. No matter the situation, however, the signer will always have complete control of his or her healthcare decisions unless a physician has decided that the signer can no longer make these decisions his or herself. If the signer has been declared incompetent, only then can the agent make medical treatment decisions for the signer.

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